‘Jack Reacher 2’ Casts ‘Heroes Reborn’ Star as Tom Cruise’s Daughter

Jack Reacher 2 is going to be a bit of a family affair when it heads into production this November. Based on Lee Childs’ novel Never Go Back, the highly anticipated sequel is giving the eponymous hero a daughter (kind of) who just happens to already be a hero of sorts. Heroes Reborn star Danika Yarosh has joined Jack Reacher 2 in the role of Tom Cruise’s daughter.

Variety reports that Yarosh has been tapped to play Jack Reacher’s daughter in the upcoming sequel — if her Heroes Reborn schedule should allow it, that is. Honestly, given a choice between Heroes Reborn and a Jack Reacher movie, the decision seems pretty cut and dry.

In the novel, it’s actually unclear whether or not Yarosh’s character is Jack Reacher’s daughter. The protagonist is hit with a paternity suit, and although the young woman behaves very similarly to Reacher, her parentage is part of the mystery. Here’s the official description for Childs’ novel:

Former military cop Jack Reacher makes it all the way from snowbound South Dakota to his destination in northeastern Virginia, near Washington, D.C.: the headquarters of his old unit, the 110th MP. The old stone building is the closest thing to a home he ever had. Reacher is there to meet — in person — the new commanding officer, Major Susan Turner, so far just a warm, intriguing voice on the phone. But it isn’t Turner behind the CO’s desk. And Reacher is hit with two pieces of shocking news, one with serious criminal consequences, and one too personal even to think about.

It’s that “personal” bit of news that relates to Reacher’s paternity suit and his potential daughter, adding a bit of additional conflict and drama to the mix. While the Variety report says that Yarosh is playing Cruise’s daughter in the film, that could just be an easier way for them to report the news, or it could be that we just learned a bit of a spoiler.

Jack Reacher 2 is being directed by Ed Zwick and also stars Cobie Smulders. It’s currently set to hit theaters on October 1, 2016.